Sunken ship is hidden treasure for tourism, dive businesses

SAN DIEGO - A retired Canadian warship submerged off the coast of San Diego has become a sunken treasure for local dive shop and charter boat operators who say the HCMS Yukon is golden for business.

Although the ship sank a day earlier than expected, disappointing its owners who planned celebrations surrounding the submerging, the ship has lived up to the hopes of business owners as a draw for diving enthusiasts.

San Diego charter boat operators say they've see large jumps in the number of bookings made since the boat sank accidentally July 14, one day before it was to be submerged by the San Diego Oceans Foundation.

''We've had the busiest summer we've ever had in the 12 years we've been in business,'' said Lois Cochrane, co-owner of Lois Ann Dive Charters.

Cochrane said she estimates her business has increased a third since the Yukon sank. She said a number of her customers are returning to the site repeatedly for dives.

Divers' affection for the new underwater playground has seemed to allay the disappointment of members of the foundation, who had their grand plans surrounding the intentional submerging of the 366-foot-long destroyer ruined by rocky seas that overwhelmed the ship. When the one pump on-board wasn't enough to pump the water out, the vessel sank.

The group had rallied to purchase the ship for about $235,000. Members volunteered their time to remove all toxins from the ship before the sinking to create an artificial reef for fish to live in and divers to explore.

And although the destroyer went down exactly where the group planned - two miles off the coast of San Diego's Mission Bay - planners wanted the ship to remain upright, making the mast about 30 feet below the surface. Instead, the Yukon settled on its side, making divers travel about 58 feet before reaching the closest part of the ship.

Despite the increased level of difficulty created by the depth and angle of the vessel, most diving charter services are selling out on the weekends, with about 70 to 80 percent of those people coming from outside the county to explore the site.

''Private boats are tying up to each other end to end,'' Matticola said. ''At times, there's so many divers and so many bubbles that people are saying it's like diving into a Jacuzzi,'' said Phil Matticola, president of the San Diego Council of Divers. ''It's just packed.''